This invention relates generally to a device for collecting material, and in particular, animal droppings, and for allowing disposal thereof in a sanitary manner.
Disposal of pet waste is a problem which has been addressed by numerous devices in the past. Scoops, scrapers, pans, and related receptacles and containers have been provided for removing and disposing of animal waste, and in particular, animal droppings. Disposal of such waste is not only desirable, but has been mandated by many communities, which have enacted regulations requiring pet owners to dispose of droppings deposited by their pets on public sidewalks, streets, parks, etc.
Various devices have been patented for collecting and disposing of pet waste. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,830,419, issued to Watanabe, discloses a disposable animal waste collector having a handle for collecting and enclosing waste material. An advantage of this device is that it is disposable after it has been used for collecting waste. This means that no cleaning of the device is required after use, as is the case of reusable devices such as scoops, scrapers, pans, etc.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,529,236, issued to Vogt, discloses an animal droppings pickup device having a pull cord tab used in connection with a cover member and base portion for collecting waste. With this device, the droppings are wrapped as a package within a flexible sheet of material, the package itself being removable for disposal, with replacement sheets being available for subsequent uses of the device.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,135,519, issued to Kotlinski; U.S. Pat. No. 4,458,932, issued to Resch; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,215,888, issued to Gavin, et al., each disclose other disposable waste collection devices. The Kotlinski patent is foldable and includes a box for receipt of the waste, and the Resch patent discloses use of a bag for holding the waste. The Gavin, et al. patent discloses use of a sliding tray within a sleeve.
Another common device used for collecting animal waste is an ordinary food storage bag, such as a xe2x80x9cbaggie,xe2x80x9d having a sealable flap, or preferably, a zipper-type closure means. When using such a device, the user would turn the bag inside out and, using the bag as a sort of glove or mitten, grab the waste and then invert the bag and seal it. While such a bag provides a relatively inexpensive and readily available device for use in collecting animal waste, many users are reluctant to touch and handle the waste in this manner, even though their hand is separated from the waste by the bag thickness.
While the foregoing animal waste collection devices are known, there still exists a need for a compact, disposable device which provides for effective retrieval and collection of animal waste, and the sanitary disposal thereof.
It is, therefore, the principal object of the present invention to provide an improved device and method for collecting material, such as animal droppings.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a device for collecting animal droppings, and for allowing the sanitary disposal thereof.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a device for collecting animal droppings which is compact, and is easy to transport.
Yet another object of the present is to provide a device for collecting animal droppings which is disposable.
Still a further object of the present invention is to provide a scraping action during use for an improved collection of animal droppings.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a device for collecting animal droppings which can become compactly nested with plurality of such devices for ease of transport.
More specifically, the present invention includes the elongated strap being made of a flexible material, such as plastic, and the container being triangular and constructed of a material such as paper, with the slot being at the apex of the container.
Generally, the present invention includes a device for picking up material, such as animal droppings, and includes a container defining an opening. A flexible, elongated member, is provided, one end of the elongated member being fixedly attached to the container. The elongated member is configured such it forms a loop with respect to the compartment, and the elongated member defines a free end such that upon pulling of the free end, the loop decreases in size and moves towards the compartment. The loop is movable between a first position, for generally surrounding the material, wherein the loop is substantially outside of the compartment, and a second position, wherein the loop is substantially inside of the compartment generally surrounding the material. The loop is movable from the first position to the second position by pulling on the free end of the elongated member.
More specifically, the present invention includes the elongated member being a generally flat strip made of plastic or a paper product, and wherein the container is generally triangularly shaped.